Seat belts save lives! Yet, so many motorists – especially those at night – are not getting the message.
That’s why the Trigg County Sheriff’s Office will join with thousands of other law enforcement officers, highway safety officials and safety advocates across the country in support of the 2011 Click It or Ticket mobilization – a highly visible national enforcement crackdown created to save more lives on our roadways.
During the May 23–June 5, “Click It or Ticket” campaign, Trigg County motorists can expect to receive tickets not warnings, if officers find them out on the roads unbuckled – both day and night.
Because nighttime passenger vehicle occupants are among those least likely to buckle up and most likely to die in crashes when unrestrained, nighttime enforcement has become a priority of the Click It or Ticket mobilization. Of those who died in nighttime crashes in 2009, nearly two–thirds (62 percent) were not wearing seat belts at the time of the crashes.
Teens and young adults who fail to buckle up are also at an increased risk of dying in a crash. Sadly, motor vehicle crashes are one of the leading causes of death for young Americans, exceeding all crime and disease-related causes.
But the way to protect you and your family is crystal clear. Seat belts provide the best defense against impaired, distracted and aggressive drivers. In fact, wearing your seat belt is the single most effective crash protection available.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, in 2009 the use of seat belts in passenger vehicles saved an estimated 12,713 lives. An additional 3,688 lives would have been saved if all unrestrained passenger vehicle occupants age 5 and older involved in fatal crashes had worn their seat belts.
However, a seat belt can’t save even one life if it’s not used. And that’s where law enforcement comes into play. High – visibility enforcement campaigns such as the annual Click It or Ticket mobilization are widely credited with increasing the national seat belt usage rate from 58 percent in 1994 to an observed rate of 85 percent in 2010.
We must stop now. There are thousands more lives yet to be saved.
So, don’t forget: Seat Belts Save Lives. Spread the word to your family and friends to always buckle up – both day and night. Not only could you save them the cost of a ticket, you could even save their lives.
For more on the national seat belt mobilization, visit Click It or Ticket headquarters at www.TrafficSafetyMarketing.gov.
This press release was submitted by The Trigg County Sheriff’s Office.
From the office of
Trigg County Sheriff
Ray Burnam II
